The purpose of this proposal is to request funds to partially support the planning and execution of the 9th Annual International Biomaterials Symposium which will be held on April 16 through April 19, 1977 in New Orleans at the Hyatt Regency Hotel. The goal of the conference is to bring together clinicians, scientists, engineers, manufacturers and students to assess developments in the use of materials for implantation and reconstructive surgery across a broad spectrum of dental and general health fields. This conference is an outgrowth and extension of the Clemson Symposiums which were so successful during the period 1969 to 1975. The symposium in 1975 was held in conjunction with the 1st Annual Meeting of the Society for Biomaterials. The 1977 Symposium, as was the 1976, will also be held in conjunction with the annual meeting of the Society for Biomaterials. Plenary sessions are planned for each day of the conference covering a) Materials for use in Orthopaedics, b) Dental Materials, c) Materials for Cardiovascular use, and d) Tissue Response and Interfaces. Leading investigators in these areas have been invited to present papers on their recent results. Contributed papers are being solicited from active researchers world-wide. Concurrent sessions will be held to accommodate the accepted contributed papers. The quality of the contributed papers will be assured by a careful blind review by the Program Committee of all abstracts.